I honestly didn't realize how much time had gone by since I last posted. I've been on the graveyard shift for so long, I've started to forget what day of the week it is. So it's September 26th. Wow.

Last time I entered anything was Sept. 13th, my brother's birthday. The past 2 years my mom and I argued bitterly. 2005, it had to do with my wedding and how her friends thought it was a stupid idea that we get married in Vegas. Last year, we argued (I think) about my mom is not doing my brother any favours and that she is preventing him from having a life. I learned that that was none of my business, and not to expect the same inheritance. Whatever.

This year, we decided that we would go to a restaurant (that way, we would hopefully not scream like Banshees at each other.) (Banshee's---Ha!---I've been reading too much HP.) I made a reservation at a restaurant that my mother chose for 6pm. An hour at 5:30, my brother called to say they would be a little late. I changed the reservation. At 6:15 I was standing at the end of the driveway letting Buddy go pee and thinking that my mom and brother would soon arrive. They didn't, but my elderly neighbour came over (unasked) to keep me company, which immediately set Buddy off barking at Old Wife-Beater-Shirt-Iggy. Iggy immediately reminded me that his son also had a Husky, upon which I had to ask if that dog looked anything like my Husky, Buddy. (I honestly did ask, because it is about the 10th time he has told me this, leaving me wondering if he REALLY thinks that Buddy is a Husky, or, is he just so old that A Dog Is A Dog Is A Dog.)

I digress.

My mom and brother never did show up. My mom got mad at my brother because of his OCD need to check and make sure that the cats are inside the house, and then, once he is in the car, he has the need to get out again to check that he really did lock the door, but once again see if the cats are in.) My mom got pissed off, and decided that she didn't want to go out for dinner anymore, she stormed to the door and unlocked it, which relieved my brother because he then knew that the door was really locked and that there was someone home to let the cats in, in case they were still outside. (This is their relationship, which last year I learned was none of my business.)

My brother, Greg and I went out for ribs and my mom got the Doggy Bag, lest she go hungry.

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It's now October 2nd, and I am sucking at blogging. I found an old draft and thought I would include it today. I worked a week of days, and now I'm back on the vampire shift. Work is going well, and if anyone is wondering, I am the only person who applied for the educator position and my manager has already indicated to me that the job will be mine. I still have to go for the interview, but I'm not as freaked out as I was. My job partner is presently on vacation so until she comes back, I am covering our full line of shifts, which takes me to the end of October. Just two more weeks of nights and hopefully that will be the end of it for a while.

There is something that is kind of bugging me at work lately, and it has to do with how my colleagues are reacting towards one of the newly hired nurses. This woman has a deathly fear of elevators and absolutely refuses to step foot in one. Most of the time we are not required to accompany patients back to their rooms, the exception is when patients are going to an ICU bed. Some of the ICU's are located on the 4th and 5th floors, so of course, this nurse is unable to get into the elevator with her patient. Which means, that she asks another nurse to go, while she gives a telephone report. On a rare occasion, when some of my colleagues refuse to go, she has no option but to let her patient ride the elevator with a porter, while she runs up the stairs and meets them at the top. This, is unacceptable. At first, I was also kind of rolling my eyes at this phobia of hers, and in agreement with everyone else that she shouldn't be working with us if she is putting her patients in danger. But then, I started thinking about it differently, playing Devil's Advocate when the conversation came up again. In our Recovery Room, we are extremely short staffed, with no end in site. Three nurses are going on Mat Leave in the next 6 weeks, and no one has been hired to replace them. This nurse with the elevator phobia, is really a good nurse and other than the elevator thing, there is no issue with her nursing ability. So, I started thinking, that as nurses, shouldn't we be a little more understanding? Isn't it better to have a capable nurse do her job for 7.5 hours a day, and if she is unable to go in an elevator, can't one of us ride in the elevator with her patient and meet her at the top? It would take as long as a pee break to do this.

I feel particularly bad for her because she is new to the city, new to the hospital and other than her boyfriend, has no friends here. What a warm welcome she has received from us.

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Oct 3rd now.
It is Thanksgiving this weekend, and we are closing the trailer as we always do on this weekend. Two-Four and I have a big dinner planned for Saturday, and Sunday we'll seal the shack up. Greg still hasn't got around to the repairs and I've stopped caring. I'm secretly hoping that a tree will fall on it this winter, or maybe it'll snow so much that the roof will finally cave in. We'll see. I'm sure that next summer I'll still be bitching that the repairs haven't been done.

Buddy has finally gone into the lake to fetch his sticks. He's not actually swimming yet, but he'll go out as far as he can while still having his paws on the lake bed. It's very cute, and he can catch sticks, Frisbees, balls for hours! I guess that's the Border Collie in him.

BTW, the cats still hate him.

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My camera has been in the repair shop for weeks now, and I'm getting really frustrated. I love this time of year, and so many times I've seen things that I've wanted to take pictures of. To be honest, the thing I like the most about blogging is posting pictures, maybe that's why I've been at such a loss lately. It would be nice to have a camera this weekend, maybe I'll borrow my brother's.

Things are quiet on the family front. My mom is in China right now. She has been a travel maniac this year! Believe it or not, we have been getting along all right lately. Buddy seems to bring out the best in her, and he is an excellent buffer when we all get together. She really loves him, and secretly, I think she likes being called Oma. Two-Four is also getting used to being called 'Buddy's Granny.' At first she was pissed at being called Granny, but I think she kind of likes it now, too.

Yesterday, I received a long-awaited-for book from Amazon. One of the blogs I read everyday is Crazy Aunt Purl who I think is extremely funny and always sees the lighter side of situations. Her sense of humour is what dragged her out of the muck when her husband left her. That, and knitting (which I haven't attempted since Brownies 35 yrs ago.) It is a quick, enjoyable read and made for a great afternoon in bed with the kitties and Buddy. I should have been sleeping, but this was more fun. Alright, that's it for now.